UWM defines the “course and a half syndrome” as the tendency for faculty to be unable to give up any material from their face-to-face course and simply add additional online content and activities to an existing course when they transition to the hybrid model (Aycock, Garnham, & Kaleta, 2002; Skibba, 2005). A number of the research participants succumbed to the "course and a half syndrome" and said that they felt they were “teaching two classes.” Although the dangers of this “syndrome” were stressed often throughout the faculty development training program, many instructors still got “carried away with activities.” Another instructor commented similarly and admitted, “Something that I am probably guilty of … is packing in too much.” A common finding was that the study participants tended to overload their courses with activities and needed to rethink the amount of work they assigned students and, consequently, themselves
1.) Now that you delivered your first blended course and have experienced course and a half, what strategies can one use to streamline the course and help manage instructor workload to avoid course and a half?
based on faculty member judgment...how long would it take the average student to do it well;
different expectation for undergrad, masters, working masters
practical conversation
total course effort...look at course holistically
piloted hybrid courses. Students FELT they were getting course and a half. Took specific activities...noted what activities are the same as the FTF class. Parallels. explicitly state this to students.
Make first three or four weeks of semester...reiterated those things in class.
Ask students to tell instructor if time was miscalculated.
Penn State...uses videoconferencing. Is it better to put content online or via videoconference? Every class session is recorded.
(it becomes course and a half if they go back and rewatch the lecture)
High school...experiences with idol time. Everyone at own pace. Hard to keep track. Time management issue.
Dialogue in class about how long things took.
Face to face--action based participatory based learnining...make sure.
Blending up a lecture based course is not as good an idea...Blended learning may not lend itself well to a lecture environment. QUESTION: Are there types of courses that lend themselves better to blending? Are there formats/levels of blending that tend to lend themselves more to becoming the "course and a half"?
Faculty...look at schedules and student population. Coordinate what days you expect people to go in an check. Determined by content and pedagogical objectives.
If students don't have background knowledge to do discussion in class, then it's more of a challenge to do,
Flipping the class? Model works well in hybrid/blended format.
Question to group: Does your school have an actual definition of what constitutes hybrid/blended?
REPORT OUT
1. Establish level of effort and consequential learning effort (captures estimated time)
No value judgments, empirical way
Does the model of blended learning impact the tendency to have course and a half syndrome?
2. Be explicit about parallel activities...addresses the perception of class and a half. (for both faculty and students)
Asking students to report back and check accuracy..ongoing evaluation.
Google form...how long did it take you (ask students)
3. Check self for double teaching...what you expected to happen online is happening FTF. FTF should always be participatory and interactive. Use flipped class model.
UWM defines the “course and a half syndrome” as the tendency for faculty to be unable
to give up any material from their face-to-face course and simply add additional online content
and activities to an existing course when they transition to the hybrid model (Aycock, Garnham,
& Kaleta, 2002; Skibba, 2005). A number of the research participants succumbed to the "course
and a half syndrome" and said that they felt they were “teaching two classes.” Although the
dangers of this “syndrome” were stressed often throughout the faculty development training
program, many instructors still got “carried away with activities.” Another instructor commented
similarly and admitted, “Something that I am probably guilty of … is packing in too much.” A
common finding was that the study participants tended to overload their courses with activities
and needed to rethink the amount of work they assigned students and, consequently, themselves
1.) Now that you delivered your first blended course and have experienced course and a half, what strategies can one use to streamline the course and help manage instructor workload to avoid course and a half?
based on faculty member judgment...how long would it take the average student to do it well;
different expectation for undergrad, masters, working masters
practical conversation
total course effort...look at course holistically
piloted hybrid courses. Students FELT they were getting course and a half. Took specific activities...noted what activities are the same as the FTF class. Parallels. explicitly state this to students.
Make first three or four weeks of semester...reiterated those things in class.
Ask students to tell instructor if time was miscalculated.
Penn State...uses videoconferencing. Is it better to put content online or via videoconference? Every class session is recorded.
(it becomes course and a half if they go back and rewatch the lecture)
High school...experiences with idol time. Everyone at own pace. Hard to keep track. Time management issue.
Dialogue in class about how long things took.
Face to face--action based participatory based learnining...make sure.
Blending up a lecture based course is not as good an idea...Blended learning may not lend itself well to a lecture environment. QUESTION: Are there types of courses that lend themselves better to blending? Are there formats/levels of blending that tend to lend themselves more to becoming the "course and a half"?
Faculty...look at schedules and student population. Coordinate what days you expect people to go in an check. Determined by content and pedagogical objectives.
If students don't have background knowledge to do discussion in class, then it's more of a challenge to do,
Flipping the class? Model works well in hybrid/blended format.
Question to group: Does your school have an actual definition of what constitutes hybrid/blended?
REPORT OUT
1. Establish level of effort and consequential learning effort (captures estimated time)
No value judgments, empirical way
Does the model of blended learning impact the tendency to have course and a half syndrome?
2. Be explicit about parallel activities...addresses the perception of class and a half. (for both faculty and students)
Asking students to report back and check accuracy..ongoing evaluation.
Google form...how long did it take you (ask students)
3. Check self for double teaching...what you expected to happen online is happening FTF. FTF should always be participatory and interactive. Use flipped class model.